Clutch mechanism.



C. L; WHALEY- CLUTCH MEGHANISM. APPLICATIOF FILED DEG.14, 1.907. 919,101Q Patented Apr. 20, 1909.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

tmrrnn srarns rarnnr ernten CHRISTOPHER L. WHALEY, OF AUGUSTA, GEORGIA.

CLUTCH BIECHANISM.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, CHRISTOPHER L. THA- Lnr, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Jrugusta, in the county of Richmond and State ofGeorgia, have invented new and useful improvements in Clutch Mechanism,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to changeable speed gear, the object of theinvention lbeing to provide gearing of the character referred to which,while yparticularly designed for use in connection with automobiles andthe lilre is also adapted for use in connection with any niece ofmechanism wherein it is necessary or desirable to effect a changeofspeed between the driving and the driven shaft.

lVith the above general object inview, the invention consists in thenovel construction, combination and arrangement of parts herein fullydescribed, illustrated and claimed.

ln the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a sectional plan view ofchangeable speed gearing' constructed in accordance with the presentinvention. Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3is a cross section on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates the driving shaft which may bethe'shaft of an engine of any description.

2 designates the shaft to be driven.

ln carrying out the present invention, the shaft 1 is provided with spurgear wheels 3, et and 5 of different sizes, the said gear wheels, beingfast on the shaft 1.

The shaft 2 is hollow or tubular in construction and has mounted thereona series of gear wheels 6, 7 and 8 which line up with the wheels 3, 4land 5 and constantly mesh therewith as shown in Fig. 1. Each of thewheels G, 7 and 8 is held in position on the shaft 2 between a pair ofoppositely arranged collars 9 and 10 each. of said collars beinghollowed out on its inner side at opposite places to contain springs 11which exert an inward pressure on the oppositely projecting end portionsof a pair of oppositely located clutch dogs 12. Vhere the (logs 12 arelocated, the shaft is provided with slots 13 which receive portions ofthe dogs and allow said dogs to move inward and outward radially asindicated in Figs. 2 and 3. Each of said dogs is shouldered as shown at111- and the shaft 2 is correspond- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 14, 1907.

Patented April 2o, 1909.

Serial No. 406,537.

ingly rabbeted, as shown at 15 whereby the inward movement of the dogsis limited and yet they are permitted to move outward radially. rlheouter surface of the dogs are toothed or serrated as shown at 16 whilethe inner bore of the hub of each of the gears G is also toothed orserrated as seen at- 17. rfherefore, when the dogs 12 are pressedoutward, they engage kand interlock with the inner surface of theadjacent gear wheel 6, 7 or 8 thereby locking said gear wheel to theshaft 2.

The forcing outward of the dogs 12 is effected by means of a slidingexpander 18 which is movable lengthwise of the bore of the shaft 2 andis actuated by means of a slide rod 19 which extends lengthwise of thehollow shaft 2, as shown in F ig. 1. The expander 18 is in the form of acylinder having its ends chamfered or beveled to form wedge-shaped faceswhich operate against the correspondingly inclined end portions of thedogs 12 so that when said expander is moved lengthwise of the shaft 2,it acts on the oppositely located dogs 12 forcing the latter outwardinto engagement with the particular gear wheel 6, 7 or 8 with which theyare associated. Vhen the expander is moved out of engagement with thedogs, the latter are pressed inward by the springs 11 and the wheel isthen loose on the shaft 2.

From the foregoing description, it will be understood that the wheels 6,7k and 8 are always in mesh with the wheels 3, l and 5;

furthermore, that the wheels 6, 7 and 8 are all loose on the shaft 2 butare adapted to be loclred to said shaft individually and one at a timeby shifting the expander 18 in the manner above described. lt will alsobe understood that the gears are of the variable speed tvpe and thattheir relative size may be varied to give any desired speed.

The expander 18 has a tongue-and-groove engagement with the hollow shaftas shown in Figs. 2 and 3 in which it will be observed that saidAexpander is provided with grooves -at diametrically opposite pointswhich receive keys or tongues 20 projecting inward from the innersurface of the hollow shaft 2.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is

In changea-ble speed mechanism, a clutch foli locking a Wheel to a ShaftComprising en oppoetely arranged locking dogs carried by the shaft andmovable into and out of engagement with the Wheel, recessed Collars atoppose sides of the Wheel, Springs housed in said collars and actingwith an inward pressure on the dogs, and im expander movable lenghwiseof the shaft and adapted to gage said doge and force them intoeng'a/gemenl'- Wh the Wheel.

In eetimony whereof I affix my si gnature in pref-wee of two Witnesses.

CHRISTOPHER L. VVHALEY.

VVitneeses J CHN M. CLARK,

Gr. LLOYD PREACHER.

